


The Penguin Helper

by thekeyholder



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, Ice Skating, M/M, Meet-Cute, Single Parents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:28:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22323352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thekeyholder/pseuds/thekeyholder
Summary: Single dad Jim takes his daughter, Barbara, to an ice rink where he hires a Penguin Helper to teach his daughter how to skate.
Relationships: Oswald Cobblepot/Jim Gordon
Comments: 9
Kudos: 58





	The Penguin Helper

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Faerydae](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faerydae/gifts).



> Thank you to [Faerydae](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faerydae/pseuds/Faerydae) for giving me the idea! One of the ice rinks in her city offers a 'penguin helper', and our minds ran amok. xD
> 
> Many thanks to [Nekomata58919](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nekomata58919) for the beta! :)
> 
> Hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!

"Dad, can we go ice skating?" 

Jim looked down at his daughter, slightly confused by the unexpected request. "Uh, yeah, of course."

"Can we go now?"

"Uhh…" 

"Seventy cents, pal," the bodega owner said with slight annoyance. 

Jim searched his pockets, ignoring the dirty looks the guy behind him was throwing him. Finally, he found three quarters in his coat pocket, and gave Barbara the juice she'd wanted, while quickly ushering her outside. 

"Can we go now?" Barbara asked hopefully as they got in front of the building. 

Jim wasn't really the type of guy who jumped into plans like that, but he was also conscious of not spending enough time with his daughter. The GCPD was always teeming with work, so he did a lot of overtime, though he tried to be home in time for dinner when Barbara was at his place. 

This weekend, it was his turn to take care of her, as Barbara's mom had a conference out of town. Jim looked into his daughter’s expectant eyes, and had to smile.

"Alright, let's check it out."

Jim had been to the ice rink before as a child, even practiced there for about a year as part of the hockey team. It was a place that held a lot of happy memories. Although he hadn't been back since the place had been refurbished, it had to be just as good or even better now. 

Once inside, both Jim and Barbara were looking confused at the various offerings. Jim wondered whether he should pay for a one-hour skating lesson when Barbara exclaimed.

“Penguin Helper! Dad, there’s a Penguin Helper!”

“I’m not sure that’s-”

“Can I help you with anything?” a bald guy behind the counter called out to them.

“Hi. Yes, not sure what to get for my daughter. She’s never sk-”

“The Penguin Helper!” Barbara exclaimed, bouncing for good measure.

The guy, Victor - his nametag read, smiled at Barbara. “This little one is right, the Penguin Helper is great for first timers, especially if they need a reassuring friend on the ice.”

“Dad, can we get the Penguin, please?”

Jim was undecided.

“Pretty please?”

“Our resident Penguin is actually available from three o’clock, so you wouldn’t need to wait for too long.”

“Alright, we’ll have the Penguin then.”

Jim paid and gave Victor Barbara’s shoe size who got her ones with unicorns on the side.

“Those are my favourites too!” Victor said, and Jim looked for a moment at the guy, all clad in black, wondering if it was just a joke for Barbara’s sake. She was definitely laughing, though.

“What’s your size?”

“I didn’t know I could also get on the ice.”

Victor sniggered. “Probably best if you do.”

Jim became confused, but Victor was smiling, so he hoped everything was fine. He needed to forget that he was a detective for this afternoon.

“Ah, there he is!” Victor waved at someone. “Your next clients are here.”

A young man, dressed in a penguin onesie, stopped in his tracks. He looked surprised for a moment, throwing Victor a look, then schooled his expression and made his way towards them. Jim felt a weird stirring in his chest at the sight of the man’s smile. Despite his ridiculous attire, he looked really cute – greenish blue eyes, black hair and even freckles across his nose.

“Hi, I’ll be your Penguin Helper today.”

“Hi, Mr. Penguin! I’m Barbara and I’ve never skated before.”

The young man laughed. "Mr. Penguin, that's funny. You can call me Oswald."

“Jim, I’m Barbara’s dad.”

Jim’s knees definitely felt weak when Oswald smiled at him. “So nice to meet you.”

If their handshake lasted a couple of seconds longer than necessary, Jim definitely didn’t complain about it.

“Victor will give you all the gear, and then we can go on the ice.”

Barbara was uncommonly patient as Jim tied her skates, then helped her with the knee pads and helmet. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Oswald and Victor talk in low voices. Oswald seemed worried while Victor tried to console him. It was probably unrelated. Jim put his own skates on – it was a strange feeling, doing something that used to be so familiar so long ago.

“Are you ready?” Oswald asked and Jim nodded while Barbara just ran straight for the rink.

“Careful!” Oswald shouted after her, waddling after her as fast as he could. “We’re going to practice off ice a bit first, okay?”

Barbara nodded, and watched as Oswald showed her to just go in small circles first to get a feel of the skates. Jim imitated them, though he supposed it would come back to him when he was on the ice. 

"Very good, Barbara! You're ready to go on the ice." 

Oswald went on first, and he seemed to take his time, as if he didn't want to let go of the rail. He finally skated a bit further, so that he was in front of Barbara. 

"Okay, now bend your knees a bit. This is your basic position on the ice. Try lifting your legs a bit, just to get a feel of the ice." 

Barbara looked a bit hesitant now, but she didn't say anything, and Jim admired his brave little girl. 

"That's great! Do you feel ready to come out here to me?" 

Barbara looked back at her dad. 

"I'll be right behind you, honey." 

Oswald smiled at Jim as Barbara let go of the rail. 

"Now, turn your right foot just a bit inside and give a gentle push like this." Oswald demonstrated first, and he almost hit the rink. Jim wondered why he didn't stop in time, but at least he made Barbara laugh, so she wasn't so nervous anymore. 

"Bravo!" Oswald exclaimed as Barbara made her first attempt, and got right in front of her teacher. 

"Let's practice a bit!" 

Jim followed, and he bent his knees, taking a few steps by the rink first, before he joined Barbara and Oswald. It was really like riding a bicycle, it came back to him so easily. Which was great, since he didn't want to make an ass of himself in front of Oswald. Barbara was learning quickly, and she became braver with each attempt.

"She's talented," Oswald said quietly as he skated to Jim. "Must take it from you."

"Oh, I'm not very good. Definitely out of practice now, but I used to be in the hockey team." 

"Wow, really? That's ah-" 

Oswald lost his balance and almost fell backwards, if it weren't for Jim and his quick reaction. He grabbed Oswald by his arm and held him tight. "Alright?" 

"Yes, thank you, Jim. I'm so clumsy." Jim admired the pretty blush on Oswald's cheeks for perhaps a second longer than it was polite, then made sure the skating instructor regained his balance. 

"Barbara, I think you're ready for a challenge," Oswald skated further away from Jim, to the middle of the rink. "How about you skate here to me?"

"Okay, Mr. Penguin." 

Jim watched as Barbara took off, alternating her feet as Oswald had taught her, gaining more and more speed.

"Honey, slow down!" Jim warned, but it was too late and Barbara collided with Oswald. 

Jim skated there in a hurry, but found them in a laughing heap. Barbara's fall had been cushioned by Oswald, and though he seemed fine, he had surely hurt himself. 

"Are you okay?" Jim asked and helped Barbara up. 

"Mr. Penguin caught me!" 

"You can call me Oswald, you know." 

"Mr. Oswald." 

Jim shook his head, then turned to the skating instructor. Oswald got on his knees, and Jim didn't miss the wince. He pulled Oswald up, worried about his well-being. He didn't realise they would be so close, Oswald's nose barely inches away. Jim definitely did  _ not _ have the ridiculous idea of kissing the tip of Oswald's nose. 

"Have you hurt yourself?" 

"N-no, it's an old knee injury."

Jim's hand tightened around Oswald's biceps. "Are you sure?" 

"Of course, Jim. Nothing too bad. Usually it just hurts when the weather gets worse." 

Jim couldn't help glancing at his lips for a moment, before he nodded and let go of Oswald. He caught Barbara's eyes who looked at them with a huge grin, and Jim shook his head, pretending he wasn't blushing.

"Right. One very important lesson we need to learn. Actually two," Oswald announced, brushing ice from his onesie. "How to stop and how to fall."

_ I wouldn't mind falling for you. _

Jim chided himself for such a thought – after all, they barely knew each other, but somehow his intuition told him Oswald was a good guy. He was definitely great with Barbara, patient and encouraging.

"Okay, so now you know if you lose your balance, just take the fall. Don't forget to have both your arms at the same side, so you don't fall on them." 

Jim remembered this as one of the first things he learned too. 

Oswald showed Barbara the way she needed to turn her foot towards the inside in order to stop sliding. "You have to press down the skate so hard that you scrape up some ice." 

Barbara imitated Oswald's movements, enjoying the way the edge of her skate just shaved the surface of the ice. Of course, she wanted to try it for real. 

"I think it's best if I assist in case Miss B here decides to become an ice racer," Jim stated with a grin, and though Barbara rolled her eyes at first, her look became knowing once Jim skated next to Oswald. Jim decided not to acquiesce her.

"Came to laugh at poor Mr. Penguin?" 

"Laugh with, maybe. I like the company, but also, can't afford to have Barbara throttle people." 

Oswald laughed quietly, a hint of disbelief in his tone. "You like the company?" 

Jim shrugged, defiantly keeping his eyes on Barbara as she was skating towards them at full speed. 

"I don't really get to meet anyone outside work. You probably meet lots of interesting people."

Oswald laughed, shaking his head. "I don't think I fooled you, Jim, but I'm not usually a skating instructor."

"Aaaah!" Barbara shrieked with joy as she approached the two men. 

Jim looked over, catching Oswald's eye, just as they stopped Barbara before she could collide with either of them.

"Boo, you're too strong now, I can't hit you both," Barbara complained, making Oswald laugh with her pout. 

Jim was slightly more serious; he didn’t want anyone hurt. Although his daughter was wearing protective gear, you never knew what could happen. Barbara’s mom would have his head if anything happened to her. "I'm not sure you understood the rules; the point is that you're supposed to be able to stop before you reach us."

It took a while for Barbara to master curbing her speed, so she practised for a good while. Jim didn't mind in the least, since he could spend it with Oswald. 

"So you said you're not a skating instructor? What do you usually do?" 

"I work in a café, not far from here.”

“Oh wow. So how did you end up working here?”

“Helping out my friend, Freeze.”

“Freeze? As in that Mr. Freeze?” Jim was surprised. Freeze, his real name Victor Fries, former Olympic skier, now a well-known personality in the city. Jim remembered he owned this ice rink too.

“Yeah, we’ve known each other since we were kids. Anyway, the other instructors took over most of his classes, but I agreed to do Saturday afternoons to help them out.”

Jim was surprised, but very impressed. “That's nice and very brave of you."

"Or more like stupid." Oswald laughed. “I mean, I enjoy it, but let’s face it, I’m not the best skater.”

“Your theoretical knowledge is flawless. I suppose you can get the hang of these things if you skate for long enough, but it’s fantastic the way you can explain them even to people who’ve never been on ice before.”

“Thank you, Jim, that’s most kind of you.” Oswald eyed him, then smiled. “We discussed my curious employment at length, but I know nothing about yours.”

Jim hesitated, fearing Oswald’s reaction for some illogical reason. “I’m a detective.” 

“Wow, that’s so cool! I can see it, there’s definitely a Law & Order vibe about you.”

Jim laughed, relieved. A lot of time people didn't take it well when he'd say he worked for the police, or they'd be intimidated. Not that Jim tried hard to date after breaking up with Barbara's mother… His daughter and work were always more important than his love life.

"Alright, our lesson has come to an end, sadly," Oswald looked at both Barbara and Jim. "I hope you enjoyed it and that you will come back soon!" 

"Thank you, Mr. Penguin!" Barbara skated towards Oswald and hugged him fiercely. 

Oswald patted her back, and looked over at Jim with a grin. 

"Before you go, let me give you something," he said to Jim. He went to a locker and pulled something out. "In case you'd like to visit the coffee shop." 

Jim took the business card, eyes widening.

_ Iceberg Café  _

_ Oswald Cobblepot  _

_ Owner _

Underneath, there was the café’s location, his phone number and email address. 

"I feel so stupid, I thought you were a barista!" 

Oswald smiled. "I am when I need to be, I make great coffee. But I spend most days in the back office."

"I'll drop by one day then, and check your coffee skills." Jim was pretty confident in his flirting skills until he saw Barbara, giggling behind her hand. Maybe he was more rusty at this than he imagined.

"I'm looking forward to it." 

Jim couldn't help the blush spreading on his cheeks. He smiled at Oswald as he placed the card in his inner pocket, like a prized possession. Before he could lose himself in Oswald's eyes, there was a tug on Jim's sleeve. 

"Dad, can we get hot chocolate? Please?" 

"Of course, darling. Are you cold?" Jim crouched, taking Barbara's hand into his, and rubbing heat into it. 

Barbara's winked, as if signalling for something, but Jim didn't understand what she meant.

"Invite Oswald," Barbara whispered, a little frustrated with her dad. 

Jim was caught off guard, especially by his daughter's sharp observation skills, but luckily Oswald was out of earshot for Barbara's stage whisper. 

"Uh, Oswald, when do you finish here?" Jim spoke up, his stomach suddenly tightening.

"I've got another lesson in a few minutes." 

Jim was a bit disappointed, but life didn't always work out. He had Oswald's number, so they would definitely meet again.

Barbara said goodbye to Oswald, then took off their gear and put on their boots. After so much exercise, Jim thought they both deserved a hot drink and maybe even a cake.

There was a small coffee shop just next to the main hall, and Barbara dragged Jim there, amazed by the display of colourful cupcakes. She chose a unicorn cupcake while Jim went for a lava cake with vanilla ice cream. Of course, once Jim’s cake revealed the gooey, chocolatey middle, Barbara stuck her own spoon in there, eager to taste the tempting chocolate.

“Hey, that’s mine!” Jim exclaimed, pushing away Barbara’s spoon playfully.

Barbara laughed, stealing even more chocolate, smearing it all around her mouth in the process. Jim laughed, and let her finish her cupcake, watching with increasing fondness. The picture only got more perfect when Barbara gained a hot chocolate moustache.

“Oh, Barbs, you got chocolate all over!” It was a mission to get it off, father and daughter laughing equally as Jim helped wiping it off. Once finished, so they got ready to leave.

“Dad? You know you forgot to do something.”

Jim frowned as he put on his coat. “What’s that?”

“Get Oswald hot chocolate.”

“Barbara…”

“You like him! He likes you!”

Jim sighed. All those unwritten ‘laws’ about dating rushed to the forefront, about how you had to wait a while (was it three days?) before calling. Or rather, texting. That’s what people did nowadays, right? Jim really didn’t know. “It’s not that simple.”

“It is, you just buy the drink and give it to him.”

There was no way Jim could say no at this point. He never could resist that cute face.

* * *

Oswald had just waved goodbye to his last clients for the day. He sighed with relief as he got to the lockers to change – he was so glad he only had to do this next Saturday. Freeze had been a great friend while he had struggled with juggling uni and two jobs, so he felt obliged to help while Freeze recovered from his broken leg. 

His old injury started acting up, so Oswald couldn’t wait to get home and take a hot bath, ease the pain in his knee. That was going to be great. Not quite the highlight of the day, that had been stolen by a stranger with blue eyes and his sweet daughter. Well, not quite stranger, he had a name. Jim. And Barbara. It had to be crazy that he already missed them.

Oswald got his duffel bag, ready to go home and relax for the rest of the evening.

“Hey.”

Oswald almost fell on his backside – again! – but he couldn’t help Jim having that effect on him. He grabbed onto the strap of the bag for support, offering Jim what he hoped was his most charming smile.

“Jim! What are you doing here?”

“I just, uh, I thought you might need a cup of hot chocolate.”

There was just the briefest touch with Jim’s fingers as he took the paper cup, but Oswald was flooded with fuzzy, warm feelings. This kind of kindness was unexpected, so he remained silent.

“Even Penguin Helpers need hot chocolate, right?” Jim asked with slight worry.

“Yes, yes, definitely!” Oswald hurried to reassure him. “Thank you, that’s so nice of you. I just really didn't expect this.”

Oswald saw a glimpse of Barbara’s curls disappear behind a corner. He wondered if she had anything to do with this.

They smiled at each other, eyes tracing the other’s features. Oswald didn’t want this to end.

“I’ll see you soon,” Jim said finally, and took his leave with a soft smile.

Oswald watched long after Jim disappeared, knowing it was a promise. He didn’t even mind when Victor teased him about his dopey smile, and if it had anything to do with the hot blonde guy he’d just seen leave.

**Author's Note:**

> In my mind, Barbara becomes a great figure skater and her two dads are super supportive and embarrassing, and they always buy her hot chocolate after every championship. :D


End file.
